Tuesday, December 2, 2014

The King by Tiffany Reisz Blog Tour and Review

Bouncing from bed to bed on the Upper East Side—handsomely paid in both bills and blackmail fodder—Kingsley Edge is brilliant, beautiful and utterly debauched. No carnal act or chemical compound can relieve his self-destructive apathy—only Søren, the one person he loves without limit or regret. A man he can never have, but in whose hands Kingsley is reborn to attain even greater heights of sin. He plans to open the ultimate BDSM club­: a dungeon playground for New York's A-list that'll change the scene forever.

“It hurts coming back to life,” Søren said. “It’s a brutal, dirty business. Paddles on the chest pushing electric current into the dead heart, Dr. Frankenstein shooting lightning through his monster’s corpse. Life is a force so strong it can blow a stone off a tomb. It’s never easy—resurrection. It’s violent and it hurts.”

Let me start by saying that Tiffany Reisz is by far one of my favorite authors. Favorite!!!! I am nervous to write a review because I'm not sure I can even give this book justice. But, I will give it my best try to express the amount of depth of emotion this book inspires.

This is book six of the Original Sinners series and book two of the White Years. This book is Kingsley's tale. I find it so fascinating because we have had bits and pieces of Kingsley and Søren throughout the series, but this book allows us a deeper look into who Kingsley is before he built his Kingdom and became King. It is an interesting to see a vulnerable, defeated Kingsley. We've seen him before as an arrogant teen and we've seen the after where he is King of his domain. In the beginning of this book we see him broken, and it is devastating. I could have broken down into tears at any moment during the first 30% of the book. We see him just as Soren enters his life again to ask him for help. Gosh ... watching Kingsley and Søren try to work through their friendship after 11 years is just tragic. Part of me began to resent Nora for almost coming between Søren and Kingsley. However, as I read on, I realized why KIngsley and Søren struggle to be together; there are no limits. There is no end. Kingsley would die because Søren demanded it without any questions. This is the tragedy that I feel mainly keeps them apart. It is beautiful in all its sadness. Their love is just endless and beautiful.

“I was scared. But I loved you more than I feared you. I had to know you. And that night in the hallway when you said you wondered why God had made you the way you are, you wondered what the reason was…”

“Je suis la raison,” Søren repeated. “That’s what you said to me.”

“I am the reason,” Kingsley whispered.

Even writing this, I can feel my heart racing imagining the love they feel for each other. The scene where Søren and Kingsley have their conversation in the pool is just gut-wrenching.

Søren stepped even closer. Kingsley rested his forehead on Søren’s chest, too tired to hold it up any longer. “You have to stop punishing yourself,” Søren said, cupping the back of Kingsley’s head. “Judgment is for God alone. You’re committing slow suicide with the way you’re living. That is a sin I cannot absolve you of.”

It's not an easy concept to understand, but Tiffany makes the reader yearn for a partner that would inspire that kind of devotion. The one thing I have always thought when reading her books is that I have never read anything that makes me question my beliefs, morals, and what turns me on and, also, make me want to be more Catholic. It is just phenomenal the contradiction it inspires.

The story then progresses from there. We begin to watch Kingsley build his Kingdom and it doesn't come without struggles. He decides that his building he wants to build his club from is the same one that was bought by a crazy, extremist church. Within this story this is suspense, mystery, and tragedy while he fights them. It is frustrating to read about how the church acts but I'm impressed with how Tiffany took on tough topics and addressed them so well. Listening to Kingsley talk about how he wants to provide a sanctuary for everyone like him and Søren makes me want to be part of that circle.

We also get to meet some of the beginning members of The 8th Circle. My favorite person of all is Sam. She is hilarious and strong and I would let her seduce the hell out of me!

“I like my men the way like I like my women—with vaginas.”

Overall, I loved every aspect of this book. I loved being able to see certain scenes, certain personalities from another perspective. I especially loved that we got to see Søren in a very sentimental and soft light.

Kingsley leaned forward, wrapped his arms around Søren’s shoulders and kissed him. Søren returned the kiss with surprising tenderness and gentleness. Usually Søren’s kisses were of the bruising variety, which Kingsley loved. But he loved this, too; Søren’s hands on his naked back, their lips touching, their tongues mingling… And then, because the kiss was too perfect, Kingsley ruined it by laughing. Søren pulled back and glared at him.

It is amazing. I will never forget in The Siren when Zach first saw him walk into The 8th Circle. My, how far we have come. It will be a tragedy in its own right when this series is over. But I will relish going back and starting it all over again with a whole different look at these characters. Don't miss out on another phenomenal read from Tiffany Reisz. If you are looking for an in-depth read that will change your soul, then this is it. Enjoy!!

Author Bio and Contact:

Tiffany Reisz lives with herfiancé (a reformed book reviewer) and two cats (one good, one evil). She graduated with a B.A. in English from Centre College in Danville, Kentucky and is making both her parents and her professors proud by writing BDSM erotica under her real name. She has five piercings, one tattoo, and has been arrested twice.

When not under arrest, Tiffany enjoys Latin Dance, Latin Men, and Latin Verbs. She dropped out of a conservative southern seminary in order to pursue her dream of becoming a smut peddler. Johnny Depp’s aunt was her fourth grade teacher. Her first full-length novel THE SIREN was inspired by a desire to tie up actor Jason Isaacs (on paper). She hopes someday life will imitate art (in bed).